Research
Professional Organizations and Advisory Role
- Member of the
Global Agenda Council on Advanced Manufacturing, World
Economic Forum (2011-2013).
- Advisory Board Member, US Merchant Marine Academy (2013-)
- Member of the Freight Advisory Board, The Brookings
Institution (2013-).
- Member of the World Conference on Transport Research Society.
- Member of the
PortEconomics.eu
initiative.
- Member of the International Association of Maritime
Economists.
- Member of the American Association of Geographers.
- Member of the North American Transport
Competitiveness Research Council.
- Member of the National Council for Geographic Education.
- Fellow of the American Geographical Society.
- Member of the Sustainable Transport in Europe and Links and
Liaisons with America (STELLA) network.
- Member of the Sustainable Transportation Analysis and Research
(STAR) Network.
- Fellow of the
Commission on Marine Geography, International Geographical Union.
Research Themes
Maritime Shipping and Global Trade (current)
- Vertical and horizontal integration in liner shipping,
terminal operations and logistics. Developments in seaport
systems in light of shifting socioeconomic trends and capacity
changes such as the expansion of the Panama Canal. The insertion
of transshipment hubs in shipping networks.
The Governance of Intermodal Transportation Assets (current)
- Investigating public and private roles and strategies in the
setting and operations of global freight distribution systems.
The role of global equity firms, terminal operators and shipping
companies in global supply chains. The financing of
global supply chains.
Geography of Logistics and Global Production Networks
(current)
- Investigating conceptual and empirical aspects behind the emerging
geography of logistics and freight distribution. Particular issues
involve global production networks, international / regional freight
distribution, shifts in manufacturing, third-party logistics, location within complex multinational supply chains,
green/reverse logistics and sustainability.
City Logistics (current)
- Issues related to the urban circulation of goods. Urban and
suburban freight distribution. Urban logistics zones. Impacts of
ecommerce and reverse logistics. Sustainable urban freight
transport systems.
Gateways, Corridors and Inland Freight Distribution (current)
- Investigating the relationships between major transport gateways
and regional / urban freight distribution. Specific aspects involve
inland terminals, rail transportation, the logistics industry, distribution
centers and distribution clusters (logistics zones).
The Containerization of Commodities and Cold Chain Logistics
(current)
- The impacts of the containerization of the commodity sector,
its niche market opportunities and its effects on global and
regional container flows. The emerging market of refrigerated
containers supporting food trade (perishables) is also
investigated.
The Regionalization of Port Terminals (current)
- Investigating the impacts of globalization processes on transport
terminals, notably maritime and rail terminals and freight distribution
centers. Involves the regionalization of hinterlands, economic cycles
and international trade.
Cruise Shipping (current)
- Geographical aspects of the industry, including itineraries
and ports of calls. Cruise markets, seasonality and network
configuration.
Tools for Spatial Analysis of Transport Systems (1999-2005)
- Investigating applied issues of online geographical education.
Received several contracts to develop thematic information on the
World Wide Web, notably Transport Geography and Global Economy.
Applying multimedia tools in the classroom by developing multimedia
lectures and online information accessible to students.
Transportation, Land Use and the Urban Environment (1998-2001)
- Environmental issues of the transport sector
in view of fast urban development, economic change and the promotion
of urban sustainability.
Mega-Urban Regions in East and Southeast Asia (1992-1996)
- The spatial organization of Pacific Asian urban regions
in view of increasing local and regional integration to the global
economy. Expanded the concepts of transportation corridors, gateways,
socio-economic change and regional urbanization.
New Methodologies for Transportation / Land Use Modeling and Planning
(1990-1995)
- Investigated issues and prospects of knowledge-based methods
in transportation / land use modeling and planning. This included
GIS, neural networks, fuzzy sets, semantic networks and decision
support systems.
Affiliations
- 2011-2012, IFSTTAR (Institut français des sciences et
technologies des transports, de l'aménagement et des réseaux),
SPLOTT (Systèmes Productifs, Logistique, Organisation des
Transports, et Travail) research unit. Visiting Professor.
- 2011, Université de Lyon 2,
Laboratoire d'Economie des Transports (LET). Visiting
Professor.
- 2010-
PortEconomics.eu initiative, Associate member.
- 2009- Institut National de Recherche sur les Transports et leur
Sécurité (INRETS), Laboratoire
Systemes Productifs, Logistique, Organisation des Transports et
Travail (SPLOTT). Visiting Professor.
- 2007- Van Horne Institute,
University of Calgary. Van Horne Researcher in Transportation and
Logistics.
- 2006- Institute of Transport
and Maritime Management Antwerp (ITMMA), University of Antwerp,
Belgium. Visiting Faculty.
- 2005- University
Transportation Research Center, Region II, City University
of New York, New York, USA. Affiliated Faculty.
- 2005-
Freight and Maritime Program and Management Program (FMP),
Center for Advanced Infrastructure and Transportation (CAIT), Rutgers
University, Piscataway, New Jersey, USA. Affiliated Faculty.
- 2003-2005, Gilbert M. Grosvenor Center for Geographic Education
(GCGE), Texas State University, San Marcos, Texas, USA. Fellow (Project:
online Center for Global Geography Education (CGGE))
- 1994-2002, Centre for Research on Transportation (CRT),
Université de Montréal, Montréal, Québec, CANADA.
- Invited Researcher, 1999-2002 (Project: Urban Transport
and the Environment in China.)
- Post Doctoral Research Fellow, 1994-1997 (Project:
Maritime Transportation in a Global Economy.)
- Research Assistant, 1989-1992.
- 1998- Centre d’Études sur l’Asie de l’Est (CETASE)
/ East Asian Studies Centre, Université de Montréal, Québec, CANADA.
Adjunct Professor.
Peer Reviewer
- Journal of Transport Geography (International Editorial Board).
- Cahiers Scientifiques du Transport (International Editorial
Board).
- Asia Pacific Viewpoint.
- Economic Geography.
- Environment and Planning A.
- Geographical Research: Journal of the Institute of Australian
Geographers.
- Geographical Systems.
- Geojournal.
- Growth and Change.
- International Journal of Sustainable Transportation.
- International Journal of Transport Economics.
- International Journal of Urban and Regional Research.
- Journal of Transport and Land Use (International Editorial Board,
2007-2012).
- Journal of Urbanism.
- Journal of Urban Affairs.
- Journal of Urban Technology.
- Maritime Policy & Management.
- Networks and Spatial Economics.
- New York Transportation Journal.
- Professional Geographer.
- Regional Studies.
- Research in Transportation Business & Management.
- Singapore Journal of Tropical Geography.
- Tijdschrift voor Economische en Sociale Geografie (Journal of
Economic and Social Geography).
- Transactions of the Institute of British Geographers.
- Transport Policy.
- Transportation Research E.
- Transportation Research Record.
- Transport Reviews.
- Anonymous reviewer for many governmental and private research
funding agencies as well as book editors.
Professional Activities
2011-, Inter-American Development Bank, Senior
Consultant
- The benefits of logistics investments in Latin America and
the Caribbean. Port characteristics and hinterland
accessibility. Geographical context and facilities suitable to
service national supply chains considering existing and
developing transport systems. Policy recommendations in terms of
infrastructure investments and the development of managerial
capabilities.
2010-, CPCS Transcom, Senior Consultant
- Guidebook for Assessing Evolving International Container
Chassis Supply Models. National Cooperative Freight Research
Program (Project No. 43).
- Analysis of Third Party Logistics Providers (3PLs) Supply
Chains. Study commissioned by Transport Canada. Influence on
trade flows through Canada’s gateways and corridors. Analysis of
the supply chains of 30 3PLs operating in Canada and North
America.
- The planning of a logistic zone in Quebec. Part of a
consulting team developing the commercial and management plan,
including site selection. Involved in the analysis of freight
flows, the required services of the logistic zone and the
interaction with North American intermodal transport systems.
2008-2009, Government of Quebec, Ministry of Economic Development,
Innovation and Export Trade
- The planning of a logistic zone in Quebec. Responsible for the
analysis of the global trade environment, governance models of logistic
clusters and the opportunity of using empty containers on backhaul
trade flows.
2008-2009, Kiewit Construction Company
- Business cycles and commodity prices.
2006-, Mi-Jack Inc,
Transport Consultant
- Intermodal transport issues. Market potential analysis of
new intermodal technologies and operational designs, namely to improve the efficiency of freight distribution.
2003-2005, Gilbert M. Grosvenor Center for Geographic Education
(GCGE), Southwest Texas University, San Marcos, Texas, USA. Module
Developer
- Co-developer with Dr. Martin Eaton (University of Ulster) of
the module “The Global Economy” for the online Center for Global
Geography Education (CGGE), a project designed to
internationalize the teaching and learning of geography in
higher education.
1997-2001, Hofstra University, Dept. of Economics & Geography,
Hempstead, New York, USA. Multimedia Project Director
- Direction of a major multimedia project involving a consortium
of 5 universities, (Hofstra, Concordia, Montreal, Sherbrooke and
Waterloo) entitled : "Transport Geography on the Web / Géographie
des Transports sur le Web". Support material for undergraduate Transport
Geography courses given in 5 Canadian universities. Project under
contract from Industry Canada, NoteMakers: Development of World
Wide Web-Based Post-Secondary Education Courses. Part of the Government
of Canada initiatitve for the information highway. Value of the
project: 89,000 $C. Contribution from Industry Canada: 45,000 $C.
14 students hired to work on the project.
- Joint direction, with Dr. Derek Booth (Bishop's University),
for the construction of the Web site: "Geography and History of
the Eastern Townships / Géographie et histoire des cantons de l’est".
Project under contract from Industry Canada, Schoolnet digitized
collections program. Part of the Government of Canada initiatitve
for the information highway. Value of the project: 25,000 $C. Contribution
from Industry Canada: 20,100 $C. 3 students hired to work on the
project.
1997, Concordia University, Dept. of Geography, Montréal,
Québec, CANADA. Multimedia Project Director
- Joint direction, with Dr. Brian Slack, for the construction
of the Web site: "The St. Lawrence: Maritime Seaway and Economic
Centre of Canada". Project under contract from Industry Canada,
Schoolnet digitized collections program. Part of the Government
of Canada initiatitve for the information highway. Value of the
project: 29,000 $C. Contribution from Industry Canada: 25,000 $C.
3 students hired to work on the project.
1996-1997, MuniRessource, Trois-Rivières, Québec, CANADA.
Transport Analyst
- Restructuring public transit in a medium-sized city.
1995-1996, Université du Québec à Trois-Rivières and COGECO cable
company, Trois-Rivières, Québec, CANADA. Multimedia Consultant
- Conception and programming of 2 out of 12 modules of the multimedia
course "PPL-1006 The Emergence of the World-System: An Introduction
to Globalization".
- This 3 credits course was the first full-standing multimedia
course available on the Internet. It includes 1,700 HTML files,
900 links, 400 pictures, figures and maps and 150 real-time video
sequences, for a total of 2,000 megabytes of information.
- Supervision of 50 students undertaking the course.
- Project part to the Government of Quebec initiative for the
development of the Information Highway.
1991, Royal Commission on Inter-Urban Transportation, Government
of Canada. Transport Consultant
- The environmental impacts of inter-urban transportation in Canada.